Lost
by Midnight Pearls
Summary: Alice's view on men is rather low. But when she is stranded and has no one to help her, she turns to a handsome stranger going her way. With a mix of fantasy, pirates and lots of secrets, Alice's life is about to have a dramatic change. Please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

The large moon's light reflected off the water and bounced on the soaring glass ship. The nameless vessel was completely made of glass but quite unbreakable. Cruising on her was not for everyone- only for the richest of nobles and Alice just happened to be one of them. This summer she had turned eighteen and tonight was her cousins wedding. But unlike most, she felt sorry for the young woman. Alice always thought marriage was the loss of freedom; shackles that bound you for life, that you could only be free off by death.

"Oh lighten up Alice!" her mother told her as she sipped more of her wine. She was sparkling. Beautiful in her pale blue gown, her long red hair that she had passed on to Alice was tied in an elaborate bun. Alice had been told many times that she was the exact copy of her mother. The same long red hair and stunning green eyes. She looked nothing like her deceased worthless trash of a father. That was why she dreaded marriage. Her mother had spent countless years in misery because of her father. It was more of a celebration than a loss when he died from sickness. At ten years old then, Alice had been more than grateful.

"Mother, you know how I feel about marriage." she said looking down at the shining water as every so often the ship broke its gleaming surface. "Why should a woman give up her freedom? I shall never want to get married."

Her mother's smile faded. "Alice, you're a beautiful girl and I too fear that an ill mannered man will seek your marriage. But one day you will realise how love works and then you will want to get married. Now let's celebrate! You're making your cousin nervous. Come on dear." Alice smiled but her mother could see through the fakeness. Alice followed her and sat beside her cousin and together they talked. Everybody was too busy celebrating to notice the danger ahead.

It happened so fast. The ship crashed. Alice went flying and hit the glass rails of the ship. The glass broke and she fell through. Her mother screamed and ran to where she last saw her daughter- struggling to stay balanced. Alice was gone.

"Queen Alanna! Alanna! Come quick!" Alanna was in shock. But she knew that the best thing to do now was to get to safety. Her sister took hold of her hand and pulled her into one of the small lifeboats. They were completely made of wood and only travelled on water. There was nothing magical about them. Alanna stared into the water- hoping that maybe she could see her daughter and pull her in.

Those who survived quickly went to the nearest village. They had been traveling for 13 days on the ship and were very far from home. The village people were very friendly. It was discovered that four people had been killed, Alice supposedly being one of them. People tried to comfort Alanna. Were they dumb? She would be depressed for many months and even after that, would still be upset. Her daughter was her only child. That night as others ate, she sat by herself. Thinking of how wonderful her daughter was; her bravery, her independence and her uniqueness.

The nest morning Alanna woke up to find that the rest of the crew were having a meeting. She was the last there.

"Why did no one wake me?" she growled.

Her sister walked up to her. "My sister, you have lost your daughter. We thought it would be best to let you rest."

"REST?" she growled. "You think that because my poor Alice has been taken from me that I am utterly hopeless?"

"Of course not Alanna!" her sister replied fearfully. Alanna was upset before butnow she was upset and angry.

"Well what is your plan?!" she demanded.

"W-we have decided to journey to the capital city Ascer. The king is most kind there and extremely powerful. But we must leave quickly. We shall leave tonight, after gathering some supplies of course."

They sold the remains of the ship and in return bought a giant animal by the name of Aluax. The creature was absolutely massive. Among its fur and giant white wings, it carried 60 seats, enough to take the big family safely to Ascer.

The villagers warned them of the dangers they would have to encounter. "Always follow the path. It may be safest route to get there from here but it is still quite dangerous. Aluax can fly but he will get tired sooner or later."

The family left that night and Alanna cried for the first time. She felt as if everyone she loved abandoned her but little did she know, the one person she loved the most, Alice, was alive. After falling into the water, she had drifted to the shore. There she lay for hours until finally she woke up……

Alice opened her eyes. Her head felt like someone had hit her continuously with a hammer. All she could remember was her mother's screams as all the chairs flew off. Tears filled her eyes but before they could spill, she heard some one's voice calling for her.

"Miss, miss!" he called. "Thank the stars you are awake. I feared you were dead when I pulled you out of the water!"

"Where am I?"

"You are in Eidos of course. I guess you don't have any lodging than? You had better come with me." He pulled a giant sack onto his back. "Its not safe here for helpless girls like you. I'll take you to the nearest inn!"

Alice fought the urge to growl at her rescure. Hopeless was she?! But she wisely kept her mouth shut and instead inquired about the whereabouts of Eidos. The man rattled off about geography that she had no understanding of all the way to the inn. As they entered all the occupants looked up and stared at her. A fat man who looked as if he hadn't washed himself for days grinned at her, making her shiver. The man told her to take a seat as he headed behind the counter. She sat down beside a young man. He looked handsome but worried. He had black hair and hazel eyes. Alice couldn't help but to smile.

"Now what's a pretty girl like you doing here?" he said looking her way.

" eh…I don't- I don't know." she replied. Suddenly all her problems came back. The man laughed and took another gulp of his drink.

"I'm Dean." he finally said.

"I'm Alice…I'm lost." she replied.

"Oh yea? That makes two of us-…I'm sorta lost too." he replied. "Well I must be on my way; nice meeting you milady." A gust of wind from the door blew his hair around his face and hid his eyes from view. He put his coat around his shoulder and began to walk out the door, his masculine gait only highlighting his tall height.

"Wait!" Alice called after him. "Where are you going?"

Dean gave a surprising look at her. Why did she care? "To Terell." The men behind him laughed. Annoyed Dean turned away and quickly walked out the bar. Alice followed.

"What do you mean Terell?" she called out behind him.

"To see the powerful soothsayer, to prove my innocence."

Alice was confused. "What soothsayer?"

"One that can help you with anything" he replied, his voice fading as he slowly disappeared from view.

"A soothsayer who could help you with anything?" Alice whispered.

"Dean, wait! I'm coming with you!" Dean stopped and looked up at Alice running towards him.

"You cant."

"Why not?" she spluttered out. "Oh just because I am a women I'm unfit to travel with you!" She patted down her skirt and pulled her hair behind her ears. "Us women are just as capable of doing these so called "manly activities"! It suddenly occurred to Alice that she was letting her feminist nature get away with her in front of a total stranger, whom she had just met! How embarrassing! But when she looked up his eyes were gleaming with open humor and he was grinning. He let out a laugh and shifted his coat to his right shoulder.

"Fine. You can come but keep out of my way. I want to get this done as quickly as possible." He let out a sigh and Alice could sense the sadness in his tone of voice. Together they began walking. It was going be a very long journey.


	2. Chapter 2

It was growing dark and Alice's stomach was growling. She had never been so hungry in all her life but that was because she was a princess. Now she was no one.

"We'll have to sleep here tonight." Deans voice surprised her but thankfully he didn't notice.

"Here?" Alice let out with shock. She looked around at the grassy patch. They were in the middle of nowhere. Only grass, grass and more grass.

"Where else? Unless you want to travel more and camp in the forest." He replied as he lay down on the grass. His head resting on his hands. Alice lay down a few steps away from him. She didn't want to sleep too far away from him in case something tried to devour her in the middle of the night. As she lay down she had a sudden urge to ask him why he wanted to prove his innocence. What did he do wrong?

" I guess you want to know." he finally broke the silence. How did he read her mind like that? "Its been about a month now. I lived in a small village. My father worked for the king and I used to go with him. I fell in love with one of the servants there…"

They both lay there in silence until he began to speak again. "Her name is Rosie and she was also one of the princesses maids. The princess got jealous so she made up terrible untrue lies about me and convinced the court that I was trying to kill her. Obviously it wasn't true but the only people who believed me was my mother and Rosie. My father didn't because he was too loyal towards the king. Not long after I was arrested and was going to be executed but Rosie saved me. She stole the keys to the cell and helped me escape. She told me to go to Terrell to see the soothsayer to prove my innocence…so here I am."

There was another silent moment just this time Alice felt scared. She was lost and was trusting a complete stranger.

"The first thing I'll do when I see her is ask her to marry me." Dean took Alice by surprise.

She rolled her eyes and gave a yawn.

"So what's your story?" Dean asked with an eyebrow raised.

Alice tried to speak but her mouth was completely dried. She hadn't eaten for hours. She swallowed and tried again.

"It was my cousins wedding and then suddenly the ship crashed! All I could here were screams and more screams and then the glass broke and I fell through. I don't know what happened next but I woke up at the beach. The man told me my family had already left and then I met you." Dean gave her a satisfied look.

"Actually I was wondering why you don't like the sound of marriage but hey whatever floats your boat…um or not sorry." Dean turned away with an awkward "goodnight."

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Alice didn't sleep too well that night but at least she got rest. That morning the sun was shining and Alice couldn't help but smile.

"Had a good night rest?" A tall, young man asked from behind.

"Not really, Devin." She replied. "I mean Dean! Sorry."

"That's okay, Alice was it?" Dean teased. "Well I hope you got some rest because its going to be a long day."

Alice couldn't help but blush so she quickly turned to the opposite direction and stretched her arms. "Which way are we going?"

Dean passed her a piece of bread and pointed to the forest that seemed miles away. She could just see the top of the trees. "To the Forest of Illusions."

"Why is it called the Forest of Illusions?" Alice asked nibbling her somewhat stale bread.

"Well if the name doesn't give it away, the Forest of Illusion plays tricks on you." Dean explained. "You see things that aren't there and normally the illusions lead you to danger and death."

So much for a wonderful sunny day.

"Lets just get it over and done with."

Trying to lighten the mood, she pointed towards the forest dramatically and proclaimed "Lead the way!"

Dean lowered his arm, reaching his hand down to her which Alice took gratefully and stood up. Something nagged in the back of Alice's mind . For a servant, Dean was rather well mannered but he had spent a lot of time around royalty so Alice let it go.

Dean finished packing whatever it was that he carried in his brown leather bag and began to trek towards the distant forest.

The silence that had descended on them was frequently interrupted by the chilling wind. All of Dean's attempts at conversation were thwarted by Alice who was deep in thought. "We're not so far away now Alice." Dean suddenly said surprising Alice out of her gloomy thoughts.

"Are you okay? If the forest is scaring you, I'll be by your side so you don't have to be so scared." Alice's cheeks were turning a bright tomato red. Scared?! Her?! Who did this guy think he was? Alice bit the inside of her cheeks to stop herself from screaming at him but she couldn't resist kicking his chins and marching ahead.

Dean was left with a shocked expression before he remembered he had been injured and toppled over in pain. "Ouch, you bloody woman! What the hell was that for?!"

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The butterflies in Alice's stomach were in a frenzy by the time they had arrived at the edge of the forest. The trees stretched up so high, she couldn't see the sky. How were they going to make it through the forest if they couldn't see? Dean gave her a reassuring smile and began to walk down the gloomy path and Alice feeling guilty about her pervious anger, followed silently.

After Alice had become accustomed to the dark and overcame her fear, she was able to see the beauty of the forest. Old trees left barely any gaps on the ground and large dried up leaves covered the grounds. Long grass shot up from beneath the leaves and exotic wild flowers blossomed everywhere.

The scenic beauty was shattered by the rustling movements coming from the trees. By the look of Dean's face, Alice knew he had heard it too. A silver dagger appeared in Dean's hand which Alice didn't even know he was carrying. In a swift movement, he was in front of her, holding her wrist tightly.

A giant wolf like creature appeared in front of them. It was covered in mauve coloured fur and small glowing orbs flew around it. The beast growled - revealing its bloody, sharp teeth. Dean's grip on her wrist tightened but was quickly released when the beast flung forward. The dagger in Deans hand was now burying into the creature's neck. It gave out a pitiful howl and dropped to the ground with a thud. Blood pooled beneath its body and painted the forest floor red.

Dean sighed deeply and almost laughed at Alice's gapping mouth. Instead, he smiled and removed the dagger from the beast's throat.

"That was a lucky shot!" He revealed. When Alice gave no reply, he looked up to her. She was still gapping and was now shaking uncontrollably. She gave no sign that she had heard what he had said and was staring straight ahead. Dean raised an eyebrow and turned his head. Staring straight back, were a pack of whatever he had killed - and they didn't look happy.

His eyes widened - there was noway he could kill a whole pack with just one dagger. There was only one option left.

"RUN!" He shouted and dashed in the opposite direction. Alice followed suit and was right behind him. Without turning his head, he knew the beasts were following. He could hear their large paws beating against the ground.

A large log appeared in front of their path. Dean jumped over and continued running while Alice accidentally turned a corner.

"Just great!" Alice muttered to herself. It was bad enough she was running in a dress. Lucky for her, the carnivorous wolf-like beasts had given up on her and were pursuing Dean.

What was she going to do now? Maybe wait for a bit and start walking back?…The events of the day finally caught up with Alice and she collapsed on the hard ground, trying to stifle her sobs.

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Only three beasts were chasing him now but it was still enough to get him running his fastest. His legs were burning with pain and his eyes were becoming blurry. Strangely enough, he wasn't scared. His eyes were just teary because of his immense speed.

Unfortunately for him, his blurry eyesight caused him to overlook the rock in his path and he crashed to the ground. Hard. He didn't pull out his hands in time and landed on his stomach. Groaning, he rolled over but quickly wished he hadn't. Looming over him was one of the giant wolves. His dagger had fallen from his hands and there was not a single object insight that he could use to protect himself. Dean shut his eyes as the beast growled and reached downward for a bite.

He didn't feel a thing. An old family friend had lost a limb before and described how he didn't feel anything but this was different. There was no tingly feeling or any blood pouring down his arm. Or what was left of his arm for that matter. He opened his eyes with a raised eyebrow. The big beast along with his companions were gone. All was left was glowing orbs floating in the air.

"It was a bloody illusion!" He cursed. He stood up and dusted the dirt off himself. He picked up his bag and dagger and began jogging back to find Alice. _God knows how long that's going to take! _He thought as he ran aimlessly through the forest.

**Hope you liked the chapter and please read and review! I really want to know if people like this story.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, I know I haven't really been updating and I've got a feeling you don't want to hear my excuse's so I'll just apologise. I'll try to update more often. I really hope more people start to read this story and remember, every review is much appreciated!**

**Anyway, enjoy the story! **

Thinking she had waited long enough, Alice began making her way back to the path they were following. Or in this case, what she thought was the path. Crossing her arms to keep herself warm, she walked slowly. She winced as wind blew harshly against her wet cheeks. Her whole body was sore and she looked like the living dead.

She heard movement and for a moment, she could hear nothing but her heart beating. Her fear was getting the best of her. Without looking back, she ran.

It was painful but nothing could stop her. Thoughts of what hideous creatures might be behind her made her run faster. Her chest felt numb and her hands were shaking uncontrollably.

She had only closed her eyes for a second when she bumped into something. She fell to the ground quickly but painfully. Clutching her fists, she opened her eyes. Almost jumping in joy, Alice gasped.

"Dean! You're alive!"

Dean's face was utterly blank. The sparkle from his eyes had completely disappeared. He looked like a ghost- like he wasn't real. When he didn't move to help her, Alice grumbled to herself and stood up. "Wouldn't hurt to help me up you know! It's your fault I fell anyways."

When she saw his blank expression, her eyes narrowed. "What the hell is wrong with you!"

Not even flinching from her deafening shriek, Dean continued to stare. After a short pause, he finally spoke- his words cold and dull. "Follow me."

Without even waiting for her reaction, he walked away. Alice sighed loudly but followed anyway. He continued with the silent treatment. Alice was getting increasing frustrated.

_Is he stupid or something? _She thought. _It's as if he doesn't even remember what I did before!_

Thoughts of the painful kick she had given him gave Alice ideas. Being so distracted, she didn't notice the shadows following her. It was when Dean began running did her instinct arrive. Chasing after him, her fear returned. _This is as creepy as before! _She thought to herself.

Dean began running faster. He ran swiftly and dodged every branch and twig that threatened to stop him. Not being as gracious as him, Alice ran clumsily - but quickly behind him. The path they ran down was narrow and almost every branch left its mark on Alice. Feeling every scratch and cut, Alice winced but continued racing after Dean.

What happened next chilled Alice to the bone. He just disappeared but his dull voice echoed around her.

_Follow me._

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. _what's going on? _The echoes continued. Suddenly, Dean reappeared but in more than one amounts. He would appear in front of her, urging her to continue or would be leaning against a tree - watching her intently. He would run just a bit ahead, too far for to touch. Her fear was blocking her head from registering she was in danger.

Dean stopped running and slipped past two bushy trees. Sobbing uncontrollably, Alice followed suit. On the other side was a clearing right next to a cliff. Dean smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. He was walking now but his headed direction made Alice's eyes widen. He was about to walk over the cliff. Stopping by the edge, Dean turned around to face her. "Follow me. It's the our only escape."

Bewildered, Alice didn't know what to do. Dean waited patiently by the edge. Alice desperately wanted to shout at him to come back but the words wouldn't come.

Finally, a hand grabbed her arm. She almost screamed. "Alice, snap out of it!" Dean screamed in her ears. His words were stubborn and unkindly but it was enough for her head to whip around. Her sobs vanished and now she was staring.

"Listen to me," He shouted. "I'm here. I'm the real Dean! I'm holding you right now - all of them are just illusions." His grip on her wrist tightened as to prove he was real. With his other arm, Dean pointed to the cliff. Following his gaze, Alice realised that the Dean who was about to jump off the cliff was gone. Shock was written all over her face. Had he jumped?

"It was just an _illusion." _Whispered a voice in her ear. Taking a deep breath, Alice closed her eyes. It was just an _illusion_. This was the forest of _illusions _after all.

_How could I be so stupid?!_ She thought harshly to herself. Opening her eyes, she smiled kindly to Dean. "Thank you."

Dean returned the smile and continued to look down at her.

"You can let go of my arm now."

Turning a bright red, Dean quickly dropped her arm.

"How amusing." Came a voice behind the pair. They both turned around and gaped at the man before them. He was incredibly tall and wore a long cloak covering all his body. He had long pale blonde hair reaching his wide shoulders and his eyes were an incredibly intense blue.

"I am Aion, the illusionist." When Alice and Dean gave no reply, he continued. "Now now, who did you think created these illusions? The trees?"

Aion laughed at his own joke. Alice and Dean merely continued staring. After a short pause in which all stared at one another, Aion, who was getting rather frustrated, coughed loudly.

"You see my friends, this is my forest and personally, I don't like being disturbed. I'm sure both of you can relate. As a consequence, my temporarily guest become _permanent _guests. You've already escaped some of my trickery," At this he gestured towards the cliff.

"But I'm not going to ruin my "tradition" just for two blasted humans."

The way he said blasted made Dean narrow his eyes. He no longer looked like the cheerful traveller but a determined politician or so Alice thought. Aion replied with a wicked smile. The grin stretched even more so when a long silver sword appeared in his right hand. It was no ordinary sword. It was wide and at the end, nasty looking twisted spikes stuck out. It looked rather heavy but the Aion seemed to carry it with ease.

Alice and Dean exchanged worried looks. There was no way to escape, unless of course they were jumped off the cliff. Without even looking, Alice knew that it was a long way down.

Aion stepped forward in one long stride. He obviously thought he could take them out on his own. Alice didn't dare doubt him. She was pretty big-headed but she knew when someone was obviously better than her.

As Aion raised his sword, a bright light came through the trees. Aion stopped short and whipped his head around. By the annoyed expression on his face, Alice knew this was no illusion.

In a matter of seconds, the light disappeared and revealed a beautiful woman wearing a thin white dress that reached just past her knees. Her hair was the colour of the sun and reached her thighs. Her eyes a dark gold-like colour. Although she was incredibly beautiful, she looked old enough to be Alice's mother.

"Aion, old friend." Her voice was soft and velvety. "I'm afraid I cannot let you harm these two…the lady's orders."

Obviously knowing who this "lady" was, Aion groaned but his sword continued to dangle in his hand.

"Aion, I'm warning you. Let them go." She threatened when he didn't move. Her eyes had narrowed and her voice had become harsh. She didn't seem so friendly anymore. Aion glowered at her but made the sword disappear anyway. All that was left were small glowing orbs.

Aion faced the woman, blocking Alice and Dean. "I'm not happy about this - you can tell your Enchantress that!"

Grumbling like a small child, Aion slipped into the trees and could no longer be seen. A genuine smile appeared on the woman's face. "Follow me."

Alice groaned but knew that this time it was no illusion and followed reluctantly behind.

The sun had began to appear when the woman finally stopped. She looked back at the two and smiled. "We're here."

"And where exactly is here?" Alice asked impolitely.

The woman continued to smile. "The end of the forest of illusions." Although they were still surrounded by trees, Alice noticed a change. The trees weren't nearly as tall or wide as the ones they were surrounded by earlier. Instead of deathly silence, birds and other wildlife could be heard in the distant.

"Thankyou milady." Dean addressed politely. "God only knows what would have happened to us if you had not come along." He smiled sincerely and kissed the tip of the woman's hand.

"My my, aren't we a gentleman." She replied. "Moving on, you two better get going - you're not out of danger just yet! Hurry now, I'm not getting paid to let you die!"

The last sentence took Alice and Dean by surprise. Before either one of them could ask, the woman had disappeared.

"What did she mean by that?" Dean asked.

Alice merely snorted. "So much for true kindness."

Dean shook his head and chuckled softly. Without a word, the pair walked into the not so intimidating trees to continue their journey.


End file.
